Journey to You
by AdriannaAJ
Summary: [Rebekah/Emily] Samara leaves Rosewood after Emily gives Zoey her phone number, and Emily finds out about it. She follows Samara to Mystic Falls with her three best friends, and she finds a whole new world where A might not be the worst thing out there and Samara might not be who she thought she was.
1. Chapter 1

_Big thanks to Em-In-The-Batcave for helping with this._

It was pitch black outside, not that it mattered much. She could see perfectly fine, as if it were daylight. She would have preferred it to be daylight, preferred to say goodbye like most people would but she couldn't. She was still hurt over what happened, and let's face it she wasn't most people. She wasn't even human, no matter how much she wished she was. Emily deserved better than her and now she could let go.

It took little to no effort for her to climb up the side of the white house. She was thankful that Emily had always left the window partway open to get a soft breeze in her room. She carefully opened it all the way and slipped inside, not making a sound.

She went to Emily's bedside and knelt down beside the bed. She gently brushed Emily's hair out of her face. "Why did you lie to me?" she asked, her natural accent showing more than usual now that she didn't have to hide. She didn't bother trying to hide it. She hoped, deep down, Emily could hear her, but she knew it didn't have much of a good chance at that happening. "I love you Emily. I have the moment I saw you. I wish you trusted me."

She pulled the letter out of her back pocket and stuck it on the nightstand, next to a picture of Emily and her parents. Once she was satisfied Emily would see the letter when she woke up, she leaned forward and gently kissed her lips.

Emily stirred in her bed and Rebekah took this as a sign, so she disappeared in the blink of an eye.

The next morning Emily woke up to the sound of her alarm ringing loudly, as if it was pressed against her ears. She stretched and reached over to shut it up but instead of feeling the plastic of her alarm clock she felt the stiff paper from the letter that had been left for her. Emily frowned and shut the alarm off before pulling the paper to her.

_Emily_, it read.

_By the time you read this I will be long gone. I've decided to spend some time with my brothers in Mystic Falls. It's been a while since I've seen them and I miss them. _

_I love you Emily. I've loved you from the moment I saw you but I'm hurt. I know you lied to me. I just can't figure out why. My only assumption is that you are scared. Whether you are scared of me or of someone else I may never know._

_I wish you the best life. I want you to be happy Em. I had hoped it would be with me but I guess I was wrong._

_I love you,_

_Samara_

Tears dripped onto the paper as Emily read the letter. Samara had been the first person that Emily had truly loved. She had never meant to hurt her, not in the slightest, but A's text had freaked her out and because of that she didn't think. She just acted and now she lost another person she cared about thanks to A.

Emily looked around her room, wondering how Samara had managed to get inside to leave the letter. Her eyes drifted to her bedroom window, and she mentally groaned. It was opened all the way and she was certain it was only partially opened when she went to bed.

She climbed out of bed and stuck her head out the window, looking around for any trace of Samara. With the shake of her head she shut it softly, so she didn't wake her mother. It was impossible. There was no way Samara could have climbed in through the window, yet she still wondered how she got in.

Emily tucked the letter into her personal copy Pride and Prejudice and got ready for school.

Throughout the day Emily tried to focus on her classes, she truly had, but her mind kept drifting to Samara.

She got an idea, looking around to check to make sure Mrs. Montgomery wasn't watching, she pulled out her IPhone and googled Mystic Falls.

She frowned as she saw Mystic Falls was in Virginia. She did another quick check and found it would take less than eight hours to get there. So while Mrs. Montgomery rattled on about Pride and Prejudice, a book Emily loved but was too distracted to enjoy, Emily's mind formed a plan.

She pulled out her notebook and starting writing, making a list of things to do before she left. Emily couldn't stay in Rosewood, not anymore. A had ruined her life, first by outing her and then by ruining her relationship with Samara.

Emily refused to lose Samara because of some bitch that liked playing God.

And so her plan was born. She was going to go to Mystic Falls, find Samara, and tell her everything and pray the blonde girl would take her back. The only problem was getting out of Rosewood without her mother, or friends, or A figuring out her plan. They would definitely try to stop her and she needed to leave as soon as possible, hopefully within the week.

Emily was too busy scribbling in her notebook to notice the bell had rung, and everyone was leaving the room. "Emily" Spencer Hastings called softly, touching Emily's shoulder to get her attention.

Emily jumped at the touch, and not wanting her too see quickly shut the notebook and stuffed it into her bag. "Hey Spencer," Emily greeted looking at her best friend as she stood up.

"Are you okay?" Spencer asked concerned. "You didn't react when the bell rang."

"I'm fine," Emily said softly, giving her a smile before grabbing Pride and Prejudice and her book bag. Spencer and Emily headed outside to wait for Aria and Hanna. When they arrived a few minutes later Spencer and Emily left their things and went inside to get lunch.

Emily's friends watched the girl push her food around on the tray. They were all worried about her. They all knew she only acted like this once before, when Alison disappeared, and Spencer had noticed the absence of one blonde girl, which had probably caused the change in Emily.

"I know the food sucks but it isn't that terrible," Aria joked, and Emily looked up at them, blushing at being caught.

Emily looked up. "Sorry," she mumbled before sticking what she thought was a French fry in her mouth, chewing it up slowly.

Spencer frowned. "What's wrong Em?" she questioned, leaning closer to Emily. "You've been acting weird all day. Did something happen with Samara?" Emily shook her head although none of them believed her.

This version of Emily was scaring Spencer and the rest of them. The last time she had seen Emily so upset was when A outed her to her parents. "It's nothing," Emily said softly.

"Em," Hanna sighed, not believing Emily for a second.

"It's nothing!" Emily finally snapped, grabbing her book bag and tray before leaving, accidently forgetting the book with the letter inside of it.

"Wait!" Aria called waving Emily's book but Emily didn't look back. "You forget your book!" she added, even though it was pointless.

The letter that Emily had tucked away fell out of the book, landing on the floor in front of the three girls. "What's this?" Spencer asked, bending down and grabbing the letter. The other two shrugged as Spencer opened it.

Spencer was speechless when she finally handed it to Aria so they could read it. "Oh no," Aria muttered sadly, letting Hanna read it. "No wonder she's so upset. She really loved Samara." Her heart broke for her best friend.

Spencer and Hanna turned to Aria, surprise written on their faces. "How do you know that?" Hanna asked, one eyebrow raised.

Aria shrugged and with a sigh she sat back down. "She told me," Aria said simply, picking at her food now. "She asked me for help to plan a date… a special date for Samara. She said she thought it would be the night they… well you know. Anyway, we were supposed to meet tomorrow night but I guess that won't happen anymore."

"So what do we do?" Spencer asked after a few minutes of silence

"We call up that bitch and threaten to kick her ass if you she come back and give Emily another chance," Hanna answered when Aria didn't say anything.

"Are you kidding?" Spencer asked incredulously, rolling her eyes. "That would never work and Emily would kill us… literally. It's bad enough we read her letter." She stuffed the letter back inside the book. "I'll give this back next class."

Spencer eventually caught up with Emily after school, finally her in the parking lot. "Em!" Spencer called out, running towards her.

"What do you want Spencer?" Emily snapped, turning around angrily.

"You left your book at lunch," Spencer said softly, holding it out. "I was going to give it to you in class but I never got a chance. You were in a hurry to avoid us."

Emily sighed. "I'm sorry," she mumbled, taking the book from Spencer. She held it tightly.

"We read your letter," Spencer blurted out, not being able to contain it. "We know Samara left. I'm really sorry."

Emily pulled the letter out of the book, and read it again. Spencer watched as the tears fell down her best friend's cheek. "It hurts Spencer," Emily muttered brokenly. Spencer pulled Emily into her arms. "It hurts," she repeated. "I feel like there is this hole in my chest and I don't know what to do. I want her back Spencer. I need her back."

Spencer understood completely. She felt the exact same way about Toby and if he left her like Samara had Emily she knew she'd be a mess. "You will get her back," Spencer assured her, pulling back to look at her.

Emily showed Spencer her cell phone, letting her read the information she had found earlier. "I've been doing some research," Emily started. "Mystic Falls is a small town in Virginia. It's about a seven hour train ride. I'm going to go there and find her. I'm going to tell her everything Spencer, all about A and why I gave Zoey my number."

"Em," Spencer said hesitantly. "I know you're hurting and all, but we agreed we wouldn't tell anyone about A."

Emily glared at her. "Toby and Caleb both know," she reminded the other girl. "Why can't I tell Samara? It doesn't matter. I'm leaving and I'm not coming back."

"You can't just bail!" Spencer exclaimed. "What about school, your parents, the rest of us?"

"I don't care," Emily screamed out. People stared at her as they walked by but she ignored them. "For two years we have been tortured by A. I have no reason to stay here. Honestly, I should have run sooner. I don't know why I didn't. I guess I didn't have a good enough reason but I do now. I can start over Spencer. I'll finally be free."

"What if A follows you?" Spencer questioned. "We know there is more than one A. What if they follow you and threaten to tell your parents?"

"Then I'll run again," Emily said as if it was obvious. "You're not going to talk me out of it Spencer. I've already made up my mind."

Spencer watched Emily go over to her car and sighed as she drove away. "How did it go?" Aria asked coming up beside Spencer. Hanna was on Spencer's other side, looking at the empty space where the car was.

"She's running away," Spencer said. "She's going to go find Samara and tell her everything."

"Is that a good idea?" Hanna asked. "Caleb and Toby are even more danger now that they know. How do we know A won't follow Emily?"

"We don't," Spencer said simply. "That's why I'm going with her."

"What?" Hanna and Aria yelled. Everyone turned to look at them.

"Spencer you can't just leave, you have school, and Toby," Aria said trying to reason with her best friend.

"Emily has a point though," Spencer said. "A is torturing us. Why stay here? I doubt Emily will be gone long so I'll go with her and we can come back in a few weeks. This way Emily isn't alone and I get a break."

"I'm going too then," Hanna said.

"Hanna!" Aria yelled.

"What?" Hanna said shrugging. "Spencer has a point. Why stay here?"

"Well there's school for one," Aria said. "And our families, boyfriends. Do I need to continue?"

"Aria we can't let them go alone," Hanna said. "And a vacation sounds good. As for school, if Spencer thinks this is important enough ditch school then I'm all for it."

Aria sighed, knowing they were both right. "Fine, count me in," she said defeated.

Pam Fields wasn't home when Emily arrived. Emily was happy about that as it gave her time to plan more thoroughly, and to start packing. Now that Spencer knew she decided to leave tomorrow instead of waiting. She already had her list of things to do that she wrote at school. First was to empty her bank account since she would need the money to get to Virginia, and to get a hotel room. She was leaving her phone at home so no one could track her and force her to return home. She thought about taking her car but decided against it. She didn't want her mother sending the police after her and finding her with Samara. It was safer to just take the bus and then the train.

Emily stopped by the kitchen and grabbed a bottle of water and an apple before heading upstairs to start packing. She wasn't taking much because she didn't have room for a lot, but also because she didn't really want the reminders of her own life. She tossed her backpack on the ground and let it land with a thump. She wasn't taking it tomorrow. She didn't need it anymore.

She pulled her swim bag out of the closet and began packing, not making a sound as she did so. She packed mostly warm clothes since it was starting to get cold, and she didn't know if it would be warmer or colder in Virginia. Better safe than sorry she decided. The last thing she needed was to freeze to death. Next she emptied the bathroom of all her things.

Finally, she dumped out her backpack and packed her tablet, IPod with headphones, chargers any money she had lying around her room and her ID.

She fastened the necklace Samara had given her around her neck, touching it softly. Samara had told her it was a good luck charm and that it would protect her. It wasn't the most beautiful necklace but it was old looking and there was something about it that made her love it.

Emily tossed her backpack and duffel bag into the corner. All she had to do now was go to the bank and then wait. She planned on heading to the bank right before she skipped town, so there wasn't time for suspicions. She grabbed her laptop off her desk before lying down, and turned it on. She needed to find a time to leave.

It took ten minutes to find the bus schedule. She finally found one leaving at ten the next morning. It would take her to the train station and there was a train leaving at eleven that would stop a few miles outside of Mystic Falls.

Emily spent most of the evening with her mother. Her mother would be the one thing she would actually miss when she left. When Emily went to bed she hugged her mother longer than normal, and held back the tears that threatened to fall. "Are you okay Em?" Pam asked, concerned about her daughter.

"Yeah Mom. I'm okay," Emily lied. "I love you Mom."

"I love you too Emily," Pam said pulling away from her daughter. "Are you sure you're okay?"

Emily just nodded and went to bed.

The next morning she was glad her mother wasn't home, so she didn't have to see her leave. She had drove to the bank to empty her account before coming back home to leave her car in the driveway. She grabbed her bags and walked to the closest bus stop, hoping no one would notice her. She was several minutes early so she sat a waited, hoping no one she knew would notice her at the bus stop.

"Em!" Spencer called out, getting Emily's attention.

Emily turned and found her three best friends walking toward her with suitcases. "What is going on?" Emily demanded, looking at them suspiciously.

"We are coming with you," Hanna said gesturing to their bags as if it was obvious

Emily shook her head, looking at them firmly. "No way," she said. "You guys are staying here."

"No we're not," Spencer said easily, crossing her arms.

"We made up our minds," Aria added. "There's nothing you can do to stop us. We are going."

Emily sighed, standing up in annoyance. "Why do you want to go?"

"Because you are our best friend," Spencer said. "And you have a point. Why stay here when A is just going to torture us? This way we can start over."

"Fine, do what you want," Emily said sitting back down and crossing her arms over her chest.

Spencer sat beside Emily while Hanna and Aria stayed out of the way. "Em." Emily didn't look at Spencer. Spencer sighed. "I know you are mad at us, for whatever reason, but we want to help you."

"You don't trust me." Emily didn't look at Spencer. "That's why I'm mad. You're acting like I can't do anything without you guys."

"Oh Em." Spencer hugged Emily. "We trust you and we think you can do this one your own. We're just worried about you and honestly you make a good point. Why stay in Rosewood when A tortures us all the time? This will be a new start for all of us."

"And if A follows us?" Emily asked.

Spencer shrugged. "We'll figure it out if that happens. Hopefully we won't have to worry about it."

The bus arrived ten minutes later. The girl's grabbed their bags and walked over to the bus. Emily pulled out some bills to pay for the four girls. It was only two dollars per person. Emily paid the fare and the four girls chose two seats toward the back. The last thing they wanted was to be recognized. Emily slid in beside the window with Spencer right next to her.

"How far we are going?" Hanna whispered.

"Should be the third stop," Emily whispered back. "Then we have to walk two blocks over to the train station."

"We have to walk," Hanna whined, crossing her arms over her chest. "No one told me we had to walk."

"Quiet Hanna," Aria snapped softly, her eye's darting around the bus. A few people were watching them. The last thing they needed was to get discovered.

"But…" Aria slapped her hand over Hanna's mouth.

"Do you want to get caught?" Aria hissed. "Emily needs to get to Mystic Falls. We are not going to fuck this up for her."

"Thanks," Emily said gratefully and Aria removed her hand.

"Sorry Em," Hanna whispered.

The bus left and the four friends felt better about things. The odds of getting caught now had drastically decreased, although there was still a chance until they got on the train. "Did any of you tell your parents you were leaving?" Emily asked.

All three of her friends shook her head. "I left a note," Spencer admitted. "Told my parents I needed some time and I was with you guys. But that's it. We all left our cell phones at home so they couldn't try tracking us. We brought our laptops."

Emily nodded, slightly, looking down at her lap. "Good." She hesitated before continuing, "I'm sorry you guys left your families for me."

"It's not a big deal. I don't know about the others but I'm happy to get away from my family," Spencer said, and they nodded. None of them had the best relationship with their parents anyway.

"I feel bad about leaving but I'm sure my parents will understand… hopefully," Aria said. Hanna nodded.

"What about Toby, Fitz and Caleb?" Emily asked. "You all just ditched your boyfriends so I could go after my now ex-girlfriend."

Hanna shrugged and looked at her. "Caleb will understand. It's not like he hasn't done it."

"Emily, stop worrying about us," Aria said softly. "We chose to come, remember?"

"So what's the plan once we get to Mystic Falls?" Spencer asked.

"I didn't plan that far," Emily admitted. She pulled her IPod from her pocket. "I have a picture of Samara." She unlocked her IPod to show the background. It was her and Samara in Emily's room. "I figured I could show the picture around and hopefully someone would recognize her."

"Where are we going to stay?" Hanna questioned.

"I emptied my bank account before I got to the bus station. That should be enough for us to stay in a hotel for a while," Emily replied.

"I brought some money too," Spencer said patting her purse. "It's not much but it should keep us going for a while. Hopefully we find Samara quickly and have a place to stay."

Hanna and Aria admitted to bringing what money they had lying around, but they hadn't taken money out of their bank accounts.

The bus neared their stop and Emily pulled the cord signaling the bus to stop. Once the bus came to a full stop the four girls grabbed their things and left as quickly as possible. Hanna didn't complain as they walked to the train station, surprising all three of her friends.

"Can we stop and get something to eat and drink?" Aria asked. "There's a coffee shop right next door. We could pick up bagels or something for the ride."

Emily checked her IPod. They had twenty minutes before the train left, so they were okay on time. "Okay, but we need to be quick. The train leaves in twenty minutes."

"I'll buy our tickets," Spencer offered. Emily nodded. That would save some time. "Grab me a coffee and a bagel."

Hanna, Emily and Aria headed to the coffee shop while Spencer went to purchase their tickets. Aria stood at the window, scanning the menu. "Four cappuccinos and four plain bagels with cream cheese." She glanced at her friends. "Anything else?"

"Chocolate donuts," Hanna requested.

"Four chocolate donuts," Aria told the cashier.

The cashier typed in the order. "$22.45," he said. Emily handed over $25. "$2.55 is your change. Wait here and I will get your food." Emily tipped the coins into the tip jar and pocketed the two dollars. The cashier came back with their food in two bags. "This one is the bagels." He handed over the first bag. "This one is the donuts."

Aria passed the bags to Hanna. The boy went to work on their coffees. Emily checked her IPod again. Twelve minutes left. "Relax Em," Aria whispered gently, squeezing her arm gently. "We will make it."

"Sorry." Emily put away her IPod just as the guy finished making their coffees. Aria and Emily each grabbed two coffee cups and the three girls headed over to Spencer.

"Thanks," Spencer said accepting the cup from Emily. "They're boarding now. Are we ready?"

Emily took a deep breath, looking at the train thoughtfully. This was the moment of truth. There was no going back from this, but oddly enough she was okay with that.

"Yeah, I'm ready."


	2. Chapter 2

The four best friends headed to the train. They handed over their tickets and climbed aboard. They kept their heads down as they walked through the compartments. Eventually they found some seats in an empty compartment toward the back. "We should have done what Emily did and pack light," Hanna groaned lifting her suitcase onto the rack.

"You were the one that insisted on using your biggest suitcase," Spencer said rolling her eyes. "Aria and I tried to tell you to pack lighter."

"Yeah but we don't know what the weather will be like in Virginia. I need all these clothes," Hanna argued.

Emily rolled her eyes at her best friend. She loved Hanna, she really did, but sometimes she drove Emily crazy. "Sure Hanna."

"How long is the ride going to be?" Hanna asked. She tucked her ticket into her wallet.

"About seven hours," Emily replied. She had checked before she left.

Hanna groaned but didn't complain. "What's with the two bags of food?" Spencer asked. "How many bagels did you get?"

"Four bagels, four donuts," Aria answered. She frowned. "With a seven hour train rode we should have gotten more."

"There's a café on board," Spencer informed them. "The woman told me when I bought the tickets. We will be fine. Hanna, pass me a bagel please."

Hanna handed over a bagel and a napkin to Spencer before handing one to the girls. "So what do we do for the next seven hours?"

Emily shrugged. "Sleep, eat, watch movies. You brought your computer right?" Hanna nodded. "Well there's Wi-Fi here. We just have to ask for the code."

"I'll go," Spencer offered. She sat her bagel down on a napkin and got up.

"Seven hours," Aria said looking at Emily. "How are you feeling?"

"Honestly? Terrified," Emily answered. That wasn't the answer Aria expected. "I'm terrified I'm too late, and when I see her she is going to send more away."

"Em, even a blind person could see she loves you. Don't worry about it. It will all work out." Hanna paused. "And if she breaks your heart again I will kick her in the face," Hanna added.

Emily snorted. Samara had grown up with brothers and that wouldn't end well for Hanna. "I wouldn't have worded it quite like that but Hanna is right," Aria injected.

"Thanks guys," Emily said grateful her friends were willing to fight for her.

Hanna opened the bag with the donuts. She offered one to Aria and Emily. Aria shook her head but Emily accepted the sugary treat.

"Do you think we should try enrolling in high school in," Aria paused, trying to remember the city name, "Mystic Falls?"

"We probably should and I'm sure Spencer will want to but none of us have our parents. There is no way for us to get enrolled without people asking questions," Emily answered. "It might be best to lay low and do our best not to draw attention to ourselves."

"Didn't Samara's letter say she was staying with her brother?" Hanna asked. Emily glared at her. She still wasn't happy they read her letter. Hanna ignored the glare. "Maybe he would be willing to enroll us."

"Unless he has mind control powers I don't think that will work," Aria inputted.

Spencer came back and dropped a slip on the table. Hanna snatched it before anyone could react. "The café is at the far end," Spencer said, pointing to the south end of the train. "I went and looked at it. They have sandwiches, burgers, pizza and pretty much anything you could want."

Hanna licked her lips. Pizza sounded delicious. "When can we eat?" she asked.

"Hanna, you just ate," Emily said in disbelief.

"So? What's your point?" Hanna asked.

"No point," Emily said. Emily had no idea how Hanna managed to keep her figure when she ate junk food more the rest of them combined and hated exercise. Well she knew part of the reason was the bulimia thanks to Alison. Emily was thankful they caught it and got her help before it got worse. It was yet another thing they could thank Alison for.

"Why don't we wait an hour," Spencer suggested.

"Fine." Hanna crossed her arms over her chest.

Emily pulled out her tablet. "Do you want to play Monopoly?" she asked her friends.

The others agreed since there wasn't much else to do. Emily set the game up and then passed the tablet around so they could pick their piece and roll to see who goes first. Spencer won the dice roll and went first.

"Do you think they know we're gone yet?" Aria questioned as Spencer passed the tablet to Hanna.

Emily checked her watch. "We've missed three of our classes so far." She took the tablet from Hanna. "The school would have called our parents after the first class. There's no way they don't know we're not at school. It won't take long before they realize we ran."

"I don't know," Spencer said. "I doubt they will automatically assume we ran away. I figure we have until tonight before we are reported as missing."

"Do you think this will go federal?" Emily asked. "Alison's disappearance wasn't a federal case."

"I doubt it will go federal. We all left notes saying we were going to be together so they know we are running away," Spencer answered.

"Do you think we're going to let us be on our own?" Aria asked. "All of our parents would be more than happy to drag us back home."

"They won't find us," Emily said confidently. "There's no way for them to find us unless they plaster our faces all across the country and I doubt they will do that. They didn't with Alison. If I remember right they only sent photos to Philadelphia just in case."

Emily took the tablet and played her turn. She groaned when she landed on chance and had to pass Boardwalk. It was her favorite spot and the four friends always raced to see who landed there first. It seemed she never did.

"Nice try Em," Aria grinned.

"Bite me," Emily muttered.

Halfway through the game the girls decided to pause so they could get lunch. "Should we all go?" Aria asked. She wasn't sure she wanted to leave her things even though the compartment they were in was empty.

"I can stay," Spencer offered.

Aria pulled a pen and a piece of paper from her purse. "Write down what you want," she said passing it to Spencer.

Spencer wrote down a ham and cheese sandwich, fries and a coke and passed the paper to Hanna. "We'll be back soon," Emily promised. She grabbed a couple twenties from her wallet and the three girls left their compartment.

Spencer took her Nook out of her bag and settled into the seat while her friends got food. This would give her a chance to catch up on some reading she had wanted to do for months.

"Spencer said it was at the far end," Hanna said pulling the compartment open. They walked through two more compartments before they found the small restaurant.

"How can I help you?" the girl behind the counter asked.

"We need a two ham and cheese subs, two orders of fries and two cokes," Aria requested. She turned to her friends. "What do you two want?"

"Pizza, two slices both pepperoni and French fries and coke," Hanna said before Emily could answer.

"And you?" the girl asked smiling at Emily.

"I'll take a Caesar salad, iced tea and a meatball sub," Emily told her, ignoring the girls obvious interest in her.

The girl punched their orders into the computer. "$25.34," the girl told them.

Emily handed over thirty dollars and waited for the change. The girl handed back the change, along with a slip of paper, to Emily. "I'll get your food together." The girl slipped into the back room prepare their food.

With the girl out of sight Emily opened the slip of paper.

_Call me_, it read.

_215-568-1767_

_Xoxo, Amy_

Hanna snatched the note from Emily. "Why didn't she give me her number?" Hanna pouted.

Emily rolled her eyes. "Do you want to call her?"

"No," Hanna said quickly, handing back the slip.

Emily ripped it into tiny pieces and tossed the scraps into the trash. "Well I have no desire to call her."

"Here's the drinks," Amy called getting the friend's attention.

"Hanna and I got it," Aria said saving Emily from having to talk to the girl again.

Hanna and Aria walked over and grabbed the cups. They grabbed some straws before going back to Emily. "This one is yours." Hanna handed over the cup with the plastic button pushed down.

Emily took the offered straw and stuck it into the cup. She took a sip. "Should we get condiments now or wait?" Emily asked. There was no rush. Emily just wanted something to do.

"We can wait," Aria said. Emily nodded. "You can go back if you don't want to stay here. Hanna and I can get everything."

Emily shook her head. "I'll stay."

It took five more minutes before their food was done. Hanna, Aria and Emily each grabbed a bag. They walked over and grabbed some ketchup, napkins, Splenda for Emily's tea and a fork. "Hold on. I want some ranch," Hanna said walking back to the counter.

"Grab a couple extra," Aria yelled after her.

"Can I help you?" Amy asked. Her eyes flickered to Emily.

"Can we get some ranch?" Hanna questioned.

"Sure, how many?" Amy asked walking over to the cooler where the ranch was kept.

"A dozen," Hanna replied. Between the four of them they would go through it with no problems.

Amy looked a little surprised but she grabbed the requested number of ranch dressing containers. She handed them over to Hanna, who stuck them in the bag before turning away.

The three friends made their way back to their compartment. Spencer was reading a book on her Nook and didn't notice them approach. "Spencer," Hanna shouted scaring her friend. Hanna grinned when Spencer jumped. Aria and Emily smiled slightly.

"Dammit Hanna," Spencer yelled whacking Hanna's arm with her Nook.

"Sorry I couldn't help it," Hanna laughed. Spencer glared at her. "I have a peace offering." She held up the bag of food.

Spencer stared at the bag of food. She hadn't realized how hungry she was until she smelled the food. She sat the Nook down. "Okay, maybe I can forgive you."

Aria and Emily laughed and sat across from Spencer and Hanna. Aria slid Spencer's cup over to her friend. The three girls dug through the bags and started pulling out food. Aria, Hanna and Emily passed around the food until everyone had what they ordered.

Emily opened her salad and poured the Caesar dressing over it. "So what are we going to do first once we get to Mystic Falls?" Aria asked. "I mean I know you want to find Samara as soon as possible but we have no idea where she is."

"We should probably get a room somewhere," Spencer suggested. "We can drop off our stuff and look around town see if anyone recognizes her."

Emily nodded. "I agree with Spencer. The four of us can share one room. It will be a lot cheaper that way."

"We should avoid being around town during school hours," Aria added. "We don't want the cops involved and it will look weird if we're not in school."

The girls went back to their food and Monopoly game. "Dammit Emily," Hanna groaned as she lost another $800. Every time she went around the board she landed on the same space.

Emily grinned and Hanna couldn't be too upset. It was nice to see Emily smile, even if it was at her expense. "You suck at this game," Emily laughed.

Hanna stuck her tongue out at Emily and passed the tablet over to Aria. Aria cursed loudly when she landed on the same space as Hanna. "Damn."

Emily did a happy dance and her friends laughed.

When they were thirty minutes from their stop they decided to pack up their belongings so they were ready to go. "How are we getting to town once we get off the train?" Aria asked.

"There will be a bus that goes to town," Emily informed them. "I don't know how long we will have to wait though."

They got off the train and walked across the street where the bus stop was. Spencer checked the time for the next bus heading into town. "Looks like we have twenty minutes to wait," she informed her friends. The girls dropped their bags and sat on the bench.

Twenty two minutes later the bus pulled up. Aria flagged it down and Emily passed out two dollars to each of them. They paid the fare and took the two seats at the front of the bus. "Emily, calm down," Spencer snapped. Emily was bouncing in her seat and it was driving Spencer crazy.

Emily stopped bouncing. "Sorry. It's just, we're so close."

Spencer put her hand over Emily's. "Em, I'm happy you're getting a second chance but you need to be prepared for the possibility that Samara doesn't want you here."

"Spencer," Hanna scolded.

"I'm sorry, but I don't think Emily has considered that Samara doesn't want her anymore. I don't want Emily to get hurt again," Spencer said honestly. She really didn't want Emily to get hurt but she had a feeling she would.

"I've considered it," Emily whispered. Aria and Hanna barely heard her. "It's all I can think of. But she loves me." Emily pulled out the letter, her last link to Samara. "I know she loves me so I have to try."

"Okay," Spencer said softly. She pulled the cord signaling the driver to stop.

They got off the bus and looked around the small town of Mystic Falls. "This town is smaller than Rosewood," Aria whispered.

"It is." Emily glanced at her friends. "We can be free here. No A, no memory of Alison lingering over us. This is a fresh start for all of us. I say we make the most out of it."

"Hear, hear," Hanna cheered.

"Should we find a motel first?" Emily questioned.

"Good idea," Spencer agreed. "I doubt we want to carry our bags everywhere." She looked around and pointed to a girl leaning against a building. "Maybe she knows where a motel is."

"Go talk to her Emily," Hanna said pushing Emily toward the girl.

"Why me?" Emily protested.

Hanna shrugged. "You have a way with girls."

Emily sighed and dropped her bags beside Spencer. "Fine, I'll do it."

Emily walked over to the girl. She noticed a slight smile on her face. Emily wondered what she was smiling about as it didn't look like she was talking to anyone. The girl was incredibly hot. If Emily wasn't trying to get Samara back she would definitely be interested.

"Hi," Emily said, wincing at how lame she sounded.

The girl lowered her sunglasses and licked her lips. "How can I help you?"

"I'm Emily," Emily said offering her hand.

The other girl took it. "Katherine," Katherine introduced. "You didn't answer my question Emily. How can I help you?"

Emily blushed and pulled her hand away. "Sorry. My friends and I just got to town and we were hoping you could point us toward a motel."

Katherine glanced at the three girls staring at Emily and Katherine. "It's not far." She pushed away from the wall. "I can take you there."


End file.
